With a heavy heart, we note the passing of a great friend and colleague Professor Louis Passfield, honorary professor from the School of Sport and Exercise Sciences.

Louis came to the University of Kent in 2007 as a Professor and Head of Department (of the Centre for Sports Studies over on the Medway campus), before overseeing it’s development into the School of Sport and Exercise Sciences (SSES) in 2012.

Current Head of School Professor Glen Davison says:

“Louis was instrumental in shaping the SSES we know now. Indeed, many current SSES staff were appointed by Louis, and others remember him as somebody who helped, or even mentored, them and the School during a key period of development. He left Kent in 2017, and had been working at the University of Calgary as an adjunct Professor, although maintained links with Kent as an honorary Professor in SSES. There are many fond memories of Louis, and he will be missed dearly”

One of his previous students, Dr Ciaran O’Grady, posted on Twitter saying:

“Shocking news of the passing of a great human being who will be missed by so many. I owe so much to Louis, from pushing me in my PhD as my supervisor, to inspiring me to pursue sports science as a career in my first weeks as an undergraduate at Kent. You will not be forgotten”

This is just one example of the many dozens of messages that have been posted over the last few days, showing just how much Louis meant to so many.

Our thoughts are with his family and friends.